Rights statement: This is a pre-copy-editing, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Chinese Journal of International Law following peer review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version Steven Wheatley, The Emergence of New States in International Law: The Insights from Complexity Theory, Chinese Journal of International Law, Volume 15, Issue 3, September 2016, Pages 579–606, https://doi.org/10.1093/chinesejil/jmw006 is available online at: http://chinesejil.oxfordjournals.org/
Accepted author manuscript, 299 KB, PDF document
Available under license: CC BY-NC: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Final published version
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - The emergence of new states in international law
T2 - the insights from complexity theory
AU - Wheatley, Steven Michael
N1 - This is a pre-copy-editing, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Chinese Journal of International Law following peer review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version Steven Wheatley, The Emergence of New States in International Law: The Insights from Complexity Theory, Chinese Journal of International Law, Volume 15, Issue 3, September 2016, Pages 579–606, https://doi.org/10.1093/chinesejil/jmw006 is available online at: http://chinesejil.oxfordjournals.org/
PY - 2016/9/1
Y1 - 2016/9/1
N2 - Doctrinal controversies and the disputed international status of Kosovo and Palestine suggest that it is difficult for us international lawyers to know with any certainty when a new State has emerged in the international community. The contention here is that we should look to systems theory thinking—specifically complexity theory—to make sense of the law on statehood. Systems theory directs us to conceptualize the State in terms of patterns of communications adopted by law and politics actors and institutions and applied to subjects. Complexity tells us that these patterns develop without any central controller or guiding hand and that they exist only as a consequence of the framing of law and politics communications by a third party observer. The argument developed in this article is that these insights can provide the intellectual “scaffold” around which we can build our model of the international law on statehood.
AB - Doctrinal controversies and the disputed international status of Kosovo and Palestine suggest that it is difficult for us international lawyers to know with any certainty when a new State has emerged in the international community. The contention here is that we should look to systems theory thinking—specifically complexity theory—to make sense of the law on statehood. Systems theory directs us to conceptualize the State in terms of patterns of communications adopted by law and politics actors and institutions and applied to subjects. Complexity tells us that these patterns develop without any central controller or guiding hand and that they exist only as a consequence of the framing of law and politics communications by a third party observer. The argument developed in this article is that these insights can provide the intellectual “scaffold” around which we can build our model of the international law on statehood.
KW - Statehood
KW - Recognition
KW - Complexity
U2 - 10.1093/chinesejil/jmw006
DO - 10.1093/chinesejil/jmw006
M3 - Journal article
VL - 15
SP - 579
EP - 606
JO - Chinese Journal of International Law
JF - Chinese Journal of International Law
SN - 1540-1650
IS - 3
ER -